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<br />Comments from Jeff Bibeau <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />I will be the first to admit that I found this year's topic(s): Stereotyping, Prejudice and <br />Discrimination to be the most difficult in all the years I have been involved. While <br />Stereotyping, Prejudice and Discrimination are related they are also very unique. As far <br />as essay management goes, it seemed that many students had an example of one but had <br />great difficulty relating it to all three - especially when the had to also use the Bill of <br />Rights, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Minnesota Human Rights <br />Act. While they have experience with the Bill of rights, the latter two documents were <br />entirely new to them. <br /> <br />So, what I saw was: 3 topics to cover PLUS 3 different lenses by which to exam these <br />topics EQUALED several very confused students with very clumsy essays. <br /> <br />Do you use a rubric? For example: Does the essay take into account the mechanics <br />(spelling/grammar/format) of writing OR just the content? Would a student receive <br />fewer points for only discussing only Stereotyping rather than Stereotyping, Prejudice <br />AND Discrimination? Would these essays receive a lower marks for only comparing the <br />topic(s) to the Bill of Rights rather than Bill of Rights, the Universal Declaration of <br />Human Rights and the Minnesota Human Rights Act? <br /> <br />Could you make the essay and reference material be made available online AND have the <br />web address included on the packet? <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Could you include some background info or mission statement about human rights and <br />your organization? <br /> <br />Could the essay question be sent out earlier in the year, say September, with the same <br />deadline? <br /> <br />Anyway, these are my thoughts. <br /> <br />- Jeff Bibeau <br /> <br />Comments from Rachel Black <br /> <br />Thank you for seeking our input. I enjoy teaching the human rights each year and <br />preparing my students for this essay. However, this year, I found that it was very difficult <br />for students to see the connection between the human rights and the essay prompt <br />(because of where some are developmentally). The prompt was wordy and asked much of <br />students who are just learning how to develop a succinct essay. <br /> <br />In the future, I would suggest a prompt that was simplified and encouraged students to <br />create their own response rather than feel like they had to answer a series of questions <br />and then combining that with their new knowledge of the human rights. With this, I think <br />you may see even more insightful responses-- I know that my students have a lot to say <br />. when it comes to the human rights! <br />